Preliminary Evaluation of an Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) to Prevent Motion Sickness Symptoms

Motion sickness directly impacts the readiness of the Army's aviation units. Severe motion sickness results in the dismissal of pilot and air crew candidates during initial training, while minor to moderate symptoms can be distracting during flight. The current medications on the market that target motion sickness symptoms are prohibited for use before flight. Osteopathic Manipulative Techniques are a low to no cost option, which lacks side effects, that allows Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine flight surgeons the opportunity to treat crew members without the use of pharmaceuticals. If effective, these techniques could be used to ensure aircrew readiness. Given the paucity of research on such a technique, a small, pilot study was conducted to demonstrate potential for such an approach.